Secrets & Sinners
by Outcastinthe21stcentury
Summary: Eleven years ago, a damaged Elena Gilbert left Mystic Falls because of her father's abuse over her mother's death along with her little brother, Jeremy. Now 18, Elena has chosen to face her demons and comes back to Mystic Falls. As Elena starts to settle in, she encounters the mysterious Damon Salvatore, a man with all the answers to the real reason behind her mother's death.
1. Prologue

Her eyes locked on the old house in front of her. After eleven years, not much had changed. Sure, there were a few noticeable quirks here and there but over all it remained unchanged. The outside was still as plain as she criticized it to be, the shutters still their dull old gray. Of course, everything changes and this house was no exception. The old treehouse that her father had built hadn't been sturdy enough to survive the town's harsh winter and was therefor destroyed. The flower gardens her mother took dear care of had disappeared. Of course, that was long before she had left. The stereotypical white picket fence was in need of a new coat of paint, the porch had a broken step and the window of the study had been cracked. As her eyes tried to observe a few more of these differences, her mind flushed of memories of how some of them came to be before her departure. She slightly winced at those memories but she quickly pushed them to the back of her mind. After a few more seconds that began to seem like hours, she took a step forward to the humble abode. When she finally reached the front door, she dug out the keys the landlord had given her, and opened the door. The inside of her childhood home, much like the outside, had remained almost intact. As expected, dust roamed the house freely. The damage before her departure had been repaired. The staircase that was once broken was currently, though dusty, in mint condition. Some walls felt empty as the photos without the photos of her mother that were once hung there.

"Well," she breathed hesitantly, "I'm home."

"Hey 'Lena," Jeremy called from the car, "Wanna help me over here?"

At this, I turned my head to face my brother. He was carrying what looked like a rather heavy box. I winced as I recalled what could be in that box. _Elena, _I scolded myself, _if you're going to get emotional at every turn, we're never going to get through this. _I made my way to the SUV I had bought with the money from my trust fund. I took out a random medium sized box from the trunk of the car as I felt my stomach churning with nerves, fear and a little bit of curiosity.

"Nervous?" Jeremy chuckled. I simply nod with a barely audible 'yes'. Jeremy is the only person in the world I could show a_ hint _of weakness to. Sometimes not even him. Jeremy looked at me understandingly, his brown eyes that matched mine had hint of nervousness as well. He's not like me. Hell, he might be my complete opposite. Even though he's only 14 years old, he understands. He's seen _things_. Things a three year old should never have seen. He barely remembers anymore but the innocence that his eyes were once known for had never returned. I blame myself sometimes. Maybe if I hadn't irritated Grayson or maybe if I were more attentive to my mother, maybe she wouldn't have died. Maybe Grayson wouldn't have become a maniac.

"C'mon," Jeremy says as he makes his way to the house. I was about to copy his actions when I saw _him. _There he was, near the house next door. He had shaggy jet black ski hair, pale blue eyes and a strong jaw. He wore a tight black tee-shirt under a leather jacket with black jeans and equally dark boots. He looked… _familiar. _Like a forgotten memory you couldn't place. Before I had any more chance to ogle over him, the mysterious stranger walked into the neighbor's house. _Focus_, I think to myself. I snap out of my momentary daze and shake my head as I make my way to the front door. Once inside, I put the box on the living room table. Jeremy and I only got a few boxes. The movers should come with the rest tomorrow. A whiff of chicken came from the kitchen. Jeremy was cooking dinner with the food we bought from the grocery store on our way back from the airport. As I sat on the couch, I looked at the brochure of Jeremy's new high school: Mystic Falls High School. Jeremy would be attending there while I'll be going to Mystic Falls University. I'm not the type to get nervous for first days of school or anything that falls in that category. I'm not afraid of the whispers I'm sure to hear or the rumors that will surely spread. There are much worse things to fear. Jeremy, however, I'm not so sure. When you look at Jeremy, you don't see him for what he really is: afraid, scarred, broken. You see him as an ordinary teenage boy. He's good at hiding his scars. You have to know him well enough to really see him. Not that anybody's ever tried. Jeremy grew up as an unloved foster kid. Nobody talked to him. I wasn't around at the time. We were separated once we were put in the foster program. I came back for him once I was free to leave at my 18th birthday. And now here we are, a month later. Some people may refer to us as brave for facing our past, others may call us nostalgic and clinging to a childhood we once had. Truthfully, it's a little bit of both.

"Dinner's ready!" Jeremy called from the kitchen. I replied with a simple 'coming' and sat at the dinner table. It was still a little shaky from all the beatings. I could barely face the kitchen. It was where Grayson did most of his drinking and abuse. I could practically see him there, sitting at that chair with that menacing look of his, looking at me like I was a fly he had to kill. I could feel all the fear I kept hidden for all those years resurfacing, building up inside of me. The walls still reeked of alcohol and blood. I could feel my earliest memory of his abuse resurfacing.

_"Daddy?" A three year old Jeremy asked his father as the latter pulled out a bottle of liquor. "What's that?" Jeremy pointed towards the bottle of alcohol. It had been a day after mom's alleged suicide. Jeremy was oblivious, though. I had told him that mom had gone on a little trip to Richmond. Dad hadn't been the same since he came back the night he found out she passed. His eyes lost all softness. He went to his room and didn't say a word. I heard long sobs all through the night. The next morning, I ruined on the TV while Dad was still asleep and saw her death reported on the news. I had cried for the rest of the day and when Jeremy asked why, I simply said 'You're too young to know'. Dad had just returned from the funeral when Jeremy asked this, and apparently a bar. He was extremely drunk. _

_"Nothing," he said gruffly, his eyes menacing. Jeremy was, of course, unconvinced. I sent him a look that screamed 'let it go' and, as any three year old, he didn't. Jeremy was stubborn and worried about his dad so he kept insisting that something was wrong until, after about a minute, Dad snapped. He didn't say a word. He got up from his seat and hit Jeremy mercilessly. Jeremy's cries could be heard all over the house. I couldn't just stand there so I cried and begged Dad to stop. His fist disconnected from Jeremy's stomach and his eyes locked on my wet tears. _

_"Please," I whispered in tears. All I could hear was a string of hurtful words before it all went black…_

"Elena," Jeremy called, snapping me out of my trip down memory lane. "Hungry?" he says gesturing to the chicken on the table. I nod and sit down at the chair farthest from Grayson's. For awhile, I sit down and nibble on the chicken. Then I look up at Jeremy who I only used to see once a month. He hasn't changed much from the last time I saw him. His brown hair was little shorter, his chocolate brown eyes still as empty as ever. I give him a small reassuring smile.

"So," I sigh, "we never got a chance to talk about _this_," I gesture to the big change of leaving the foster care system. He nods at me and smiles nervously. "I mean, y'know, with starting a new school and all, leaving Abigail and Daniel," I say, referring to his three year long foster parents. He got lucky with Abigail and Daniel who were the sweetest people I have ever met. They honestly loved Jeremy. They were the closest thing to family he ever had. I didn't want to bring him with me, seeing how happy he was over in New Jersey but he insisted, saying he didn't want me to face this alone. I, however, wasn't as lucky in the foster parents department. I had a string of foster parents in New York. Each more horrible than the previous. Most recently, Isobel Flemming. She treated me like her little bitch to cater and create her every whim.

"Honestly," Jeremy replied, "it's a little difficult of a change but I'm glad I did it," I trace his eyes to see any smidgen of regret but he looks away. I know he hates the sympathetic looks. As if he'll always be known as Jeremy Gilbert: The Psychopath's Son. "Look, 'Lena, you're my sister and I'm not going to leave you alone here," he continues. He sounds like I'm the one who needs protecting even though it's the other way around.

"Thanks, Jer," I say meekly. "I think I'm gonna hit the sack," I say and make my way up the stairs. I go along the poorly lit hallway and enter my old room. The pink walls haven't faded, the bed's broken leg was held still by a book stack. The old children's books that my mom used to read to me were still perfectly arranged. I sighed. I wasn't going to sleep here tonight. Bed's too small. I'm staying in the guest room and Jeremy'll sleep at mom and Grayson's former room. I went to the bathroom and brushed my teeth. I caught sight of my reflection. The last time I looked at this mirror, I was looking at the bruises on my arms. Grayson was careful not to hit us one the face. I closed my eyes, breathed and went to the guest room or rather, my room. I set up my alarm to six am and got under the sheets.

Tomorrow will be my first day back in Mystic Falls.


	2. Chapter 1

*Beep**Beep**Beep*

The disturbing alarm woke me up at six am. I lazily sat up and hit the snooze button, trying to ignore what today would be. Sadly, before I could drift back to sleep, Jeremy's barging steps flooded into the room.

"Up and at 'em, 'Lena!" He chanted excitedly. I moaned in disapproval but, of course, that didn't stop him. Jeremy chuckled before pushing me off the bed and then exiting the room hurriedly.

"Yeah…" I mumbled, "you better run…"

After I freshened up and got dressed, I trudged downstairs to the kitchen where Jeremy had some AC/DC song playing. He was on sitting on a stool near the counter, looking through that brochure again. He didn't look tense or nervous, though. He probably wasn't anyway.

"Hey Jer, think you can eat something on the way?" I asked, "I don't feel like burning the house down this morning." You'd think I'd be joking. I have started a fire once with my 'murderous' cooking skills as Mrs. Halfway, my former home ec teacher, likes to put it. To this day, I still don't know what my friend, Rebekah, was thinking when she said 'Hey, let's take Home Ec!'

"Yeah, c'mon," he nodded while grabbing his iPod and putting his earbuds in and took his sketch book out as we reached the car. Jeremy's something of an artist. He took a class once and the teacher deemed him a 'prodigy'. I looked out of the window at the drive down to Mystic Falls High School. Apparently, Grayson and mom went there. It's where they met, started dating, bla bla bla, the whole high school sweethearts skit. Like any other stereotype, they went to college together, he proposed, they got married, had me then Jeremy then she died, he became a raging alcoholic/maniac and got sent to an asylum. Definitely your average all-american love story. The drive, though merely 15 minutes had begun to feel like hours. Lilly Allen's _Hard Out Here _started playing_. _I tried to push away the pure irony and fiddled with the radio station until _Broadway_ by The Goo Goo Dolls came up. Eventually, we pulled up at the high school driveway. Jeremy took off without a second thought and before I knew it, I was driving to Mystic Falls University. Mystic Falls' typical white picket fence life was a real change from New York's brutality. After about 10 minutes, I parked and made my way to the building. Students were crowded at the front doors and the place looked like a madhouse.

"Elena Gilbert?!" A high-pitched voice shrieked. Before I had anytime to think, I was enveloped in a tight hug with blond curls blaring my vision. The blonde pulled back with a wide, familiar smile on her face. She saw the look of confusion on my face for what she added, "Don't you remember me?"

"Umm… Sorry," I shrugged, "my memory's a little rusty."

"Caroline, Caroline Forbes," she clarified, "I was your best friend about a decade ago!" And then it hit me. Caroline, as she already explained, was my childhood best friend since she pulled my hair in the sandbox when we were three. When I left, Caroline was chubby with lime green glasses and her blond hair in two pigtails. Well, looks like puberty treated her well because now she has an hourglass figure, dazzling blue eyes and elegant blond hair.

"Caroline!" I smiled. "Oh my God, you've changed! I could barely recognize you!"

"Thank you," she started, "wait until Bonnie sees you! She will freak!" Bonnie Bennet was our other best friend. For the most part, she was a quiet shy girl but now with Caroline looking like America's Next Top Model, God knows how much Bonnie's changed. Caroline dragged me in the building and ran strait to the lockers.

"Bonnie!" Caroline called and the other brunette locked her eyes on me and her jaw dropped. I'll admit, I was surprised that they recognized me so quickly but then again, I haven't changed much compared to Caroline. Bonnie enveloped me in a hug almost as tight as Caroline's earlier one.

"Elena!" she shrieked, "What are you doing here?!"

"Why?" I ask smugly, "Surprised to me?"

"Surprised?!" Caroline started, "Try dumbfounded!"

"Well," I said, "I'm here to get an education." I shrugged while looking down at my feet, trying to avoid any type of conversation about Grayson.

"I mean in Mystic Falls," Caroline clarified.

"I'm here because Mystic Falls is my home and I'm not going to let _him _ruin that for me," Bonnie and Caroline's figures instantly tense up at the mention of Grayson. Both of them were completely oblivious during the months of abuse. They cried when they found out I was leaving. Before I did, someone ratted Grayson out. I thought that it was them at first but clearly, it wasn't. The Mystery Person wanted to remain anonymous during the whole ordeal.

"I'm sorry, 'Lena," Bonnie whispered, "shouldn't have asked."

"It's okay," I breathe, "it was a long time ago and I'm over it." They can tell I'm lying but they can also tell that I don't want to talk about it.

"Umm…" Caroline starts, "What class do you have now, Elena?" I pull out my timetable from my pocket and show it to her. "Economics with Mr. Tanner? Man, is he boring. Luckily for you, Bonnie's stuck with Borezilla too." I chuckle as Bonnie shakes her head. I'm about to say something when I see _him _again. Not Grayson but the mystery neighbor from the house next door. Before I have time to ask about him, the bell rings and Bonnie leads me to the designated class. It was, like Caroline said, borezilla. Soon enough, it was time for lunch and Bonnie, Caroline and I were on the way to the cafeteria.

"So," Caroline said, "What have you been up to all these years?"

"Y'know, around," I shrug, "I went from foster parent to another. Each more unbearable than the other. Most recently, Isobel Flemming. I spent most of my years in New York though I lived in Chicago with this one foster parent called John Sommers and his wife for about three months. They weren't so terrible, though. But I left because John got his wife pregnant and I didn't really bond well with babies at the time. I was about nine years old, I think. I got separated from Jeremy. He spent the first year with an elderly couple, then the next two years with a Blaine and Kurt, a gay couple then the year after that with a woman called Pearl and her daughter Anna. That didn't work out well because Jeremy and Anna started getting feelings for each other and Pearl considered that inappropriate then the next three years with this guy called Will but then Will started dating this woman who despised Jeremy so that didn't work out well. And then, finally, he went to Mrs. Flowers. Anyways, what about you guys?"

"Umm…" Caroline blurted, "I had a salad yesterday." I chuckled at her impulse. "Seriously, though, nothing much has changed in this little town. It's like being trapped in a little bubble. Neither have we really," I scoff at this. "What?! We haven't!"

"Maybe not in recent years," I explain, "but you have changed a lot since I was last here. For the better, of course."

"What?!" She asked, surprised. "I did not look that bad, then!"

"Oh yes, you did," Bonnie said. "Here, I have a picture on my phone to prove it to you," Bonnie pulled out her phone and showed Caroline a picture and the latter shrieked in resignation, begging not to see it. "She looked like that until she was sixteen when her crush stood her up. What was his name? Tom? Tim?"

"Tyler," she corrected, "But I'm not the only one! Look at Elena for instance! Does she still look all innocent now with her big doe eyes and braid? I mean look at her hair! Which I totally love by the way!" She gestured to my hair, more specifically the red streaks on it.

"Thanks," I smiled, "Isobel was going to kill me when she saw them." We were interrupted when we heard a guy yelling at another. I froze when I saw _him_ again. Yes, the neighbor. "Who's he?" I asked Caroline and Bonnie. You could practically see fumes going off Caroline's head.

"Damon Salvatore," Bonnie answered, "the stereotypical town's typical 'bad boy'. He moved here with his dad and brother around the time you left. His brother's in Jeremy's grade, I think."

"I hate that guy!" Caroline exclaimed. "When we were in summer camp, he dyed my hair blue! Everybody called me Blueberry Muffin from that Strawberry Shortcake show for a month!" She fumed at the memory. "Worst part, karma still hasn't kicked his ass yet and every time I want to, Bonnie stops me!"

"Care, relax," Bonnie said in a calm voice, "that was seven years ago." I looked at Damon again. This time he was sitting with a group of guys I didn't recognize. Bonnie sensed the confusion on my face and answered, "That's Damon's 'gang'. On the right, you have Klaus Mikaelson, then Mason Lockwood and his cousin, Tyler, then you have Matt Donovan. Matt's not as bad as the rest. He's pretty decent." When I looked back at them, I saw the blonde guy -Klaus- coming towards us. More specifically, Caroline.

"Hello, Love," he said in a thick British accent while taking the seat next to Caroline's.

"What do you want, Klaus?" Caroline replied sourly, her eyes glassy.

"Why do you think I want anything?" He said pretending to act innocent. I mentally scoffed at the cliché-ness of the moment while Bonnie rolled her eyes as if this were a regular occurrence and judging by the looks of it, it was.

"Because you're Klaus!" She snapped, "You're greedy and manipulative and you fuck with anything in a skirt! And if I were you, I'd go back to your little group of "badasses" and leave me alone because you know as well as me that I would never go out with you let alone sleep with you!" Even Bonnie looked surprised at her friend's words.

"Ouch," Klaus chuckled, apparently unaffected by Caroline's harsh words. Apart from him, there are other people around here. Some I recognize, some I don't. There's this one girl, Tessa. She was Bonnie's least favorite person. Still is from the stories I heard during Economics. On one table, there is Enzo, Vaughn and Connor. I remember how much those boys loved to pull my braids when I was five. Another group is a bunch of students who Caroline deemed "nerds" in her junior year of high school where she did, what Bonnie calls the "transformation". I could recognize a few, like Atticus Shane and Jamie Wilson and some I don't.

"Who's your little friend here?" Klaus said, interrupting my chain of thoughts.

"She's not interested, Klaus," Bonnie said in my behalf. I could hear Caroline mumbling 'pig' under her breath as if she was disappointed he was targeting someone else so soon.

"No, not for me," I see Caroline's eyes light discreetly at this, "I prefer blondes but I was actually referring to my buddy, Damon over there-" At this, Caroline immediately cuts him off.

"No!" She snapped, "Absolutely not! You are not going to send her off to that-that jackass so that he can have a one night stand and send her off packing!" Okay, either Caroline's PMS-ing or she's insane. Maybe a little bit of both?

"Somebody's got a temper," Klaus teases and rolls his eyes before leaving to join his friends. Caroline goes back to angrily picking at her salad.

She wasn't like this 11 years ago. She was rather shy, kind of nerdy. Very… _Erudite. _I find it hard to believe that she changed this much because of one crush. Tyler Lockwood too of all people! I knew him. He's what our parents would have called a troublemaker. Would have if he didn't pretend to be a saint around them. Surely, he's changed but he still looks like a jerk from here. Just, a more adult type of jerk for lack of a better word. Before I had more of a chance to ask about it, the bell rang and I went to my Marketing class. My professor, Mr. Shmidt is boring as well. _Where do they find these people? _I can't help but think. Neither Bonnie or Caroline are in this class and I'm currently sitting next to a girl with raven black hair and baby blue eyes named April Young. The town Pastor's daughter. I never liked her dad. Always so stuffy and judgmental of things he does not know, pastor or not. He's been like that since his wife, April's mother died. Jeremy used to call him "Crabby Mr. Young". No, not very original but the guy was three. At least Young only became crabbier and didn't result to alcohol and violence like Grayson. I still remember moving to New York. I was short on friends. Hell, I only had Rebekah. She wasn't a foster child but her house was dysfunctional enough. Her mother was an alcoholic -not abusive, though- and she, being the eldest had to provide the income. She worked as a shopkeeper at this tiny boutique. Her wage was barely enough to feed herself, her preadolescent brothers, Finn and Kol and her baby half-brother, Henrik. Her father, Michael had abandoned her and her siblings -which were only Finn and Kol at the time- for some 'Twenty year old twinkie who was only after his money' as Rebekah put it. Her mother was crushed, but she wasn't unstable yet, then. It was after this other guy ditched her after he got her pregnant with Henrik that rendered her unstable. We related over not having a traditional family or a real place to call home. Rebekah never considered her dingy old apartment home. _Oh, it's terrible_, she used to tell me, _to come home everyday to see Finn watching over our mother and Kol nursing Henrik. And when they see me, they take their eyes off what they're doing and just look at me, their eyes wide, as if asking: 'Did you get food? Money? Anything?' All I could do then was give them a small, sad smile and shake my head. _I remember meeting Rebekah a few years after I first came to New York. I remember telling her I was leaving, I remember telling Isobel I was leaving. Eventually, the bell rang. I was making my way out of the university, at the parking lot, when Damon showed up out of nowhere.

"Excuse me," I told him as I tried to make my way to the car. He blocked me. I looked up at his eyes to see a mesmerizing shade of blue.

"You're the Gilbert girl, aren't you?" He didn't need an answer to keep on talking, "I heard your story, you know. Heartbreaking, truly."

"Look, can I go now?" I breathed, "I don't exactly need a reminder of that."

"Especially about your mother," he shook his head, ignoring my reply, "To know that she left you without telling you without warning, not showing any sines. Especially after that terrible fight she had with your father," At this, my head snaps up. _How did he know that? _I only knew because I heard the screaming. He wasn't even in town at the time. Before I can ask, he's gone. Nobody knew about that fight. Nobody.

_I couldn't sleep. The screaming's too loud. I could hear the floorboards creak as I made my way to my parents' room, the source of the noise. I poked my eye through the door. There was my mom, her cheeks tearstained, and her eyes puffy. Then my dad, his cheeks burning with rage, his eyes aflame. I couldn't hear their words clearly. I could hear the floorboards creaking softly again. I looked to my right and saw Jeremy looking at me with a tired expression while rubbing his eyes._

_"Ewena," he whispered, "What's happening?" I didn't say anything but brought my finger to his lips to shush him. Tears started coming through his eyes as the screaming continued. They never ever fought. At least, not like this. The screaming proceeded to grow louder until my ears were about to pop. I wanted to stop them but I knew I couldn't. Jeremy looked at me helplessly and I smiled sadly trying to reassure him. I heard their foot steps coming and I told Jeremy to go to his room as I started to head to mine. I kept hearing 'I'm done! I'm done!' coming from my mother. When I looked downstairs, where they had moved the fight, I saw Dad sitting with a bottle of red stuff. He looked terrible. So did the room. Books all over the floor, a broken chair and table and lamp that fell. I scurried back to my room and once I awoke, my life had turned into a living hell…_

I looked outside the window of my car to see Jeremy talking to some guy and honked the car's horn. The guy didn't look familiar at all. He had brown, overdone if I might add, hair, green eyes and a strong build. Jeremy said goodbye to his friend and made his way to the car.

"How was your first day?" I asked, not taking my eyes off the road.

"Okay, I guess," he replied, slouching on his seat, "I met this guy. Apparently, he lives next door. His name's Stefan Salvatore."

_Salvatore._

"S-Salvatore?" I spluttered, "Any relation to Damon Salvatore?"

"Yeah, his brother," Jeremy said, looking out the window. Suddenly, Caroline's words got stuck in my head: _His brother's in Jeremy's grade, I think. _I didn't know why this bothered me. There was just something about Damon. I couldn't place it. He's like that puzzle peace that you don't notice is missing until you've finished the puzzle.

§~§~§~§~§~§~§

The movers got delayed and came in the afternoon instead of morning. All the boxes were in and most things were sorted out by evening. We don't really have that many things since the furniture was already all here but there were still things. Most of them Jeremy's. I never stayed in a place long enough to get any other belongings than clothes, a phone and toiletries. I made my way to the my room and former guest room and noticed something, my room was face to face with Damon's! I could see him through my window! He was, surprisingly, reading. His raven black hair was ruffled and his black tee-shirt was wrinkled. His piercing blue eyes focused intensely on the paper as his hand made its way through his dark hair.

"Elena!" Jeremy called from the attic. I hadn't had the chance to visit that particular room yet. I stepped out of my room and Jeremy came towards me holding what looked like a heavy brown box. He dropped when he reached me and I instantly looked at its contents. There were several albums, photos… Outdated ones at that. From 1991 or so, before Jeremy or I were born. They were of my mom and Grayson in their final college year. They were 21 at the time. They had me when they were 27. They weren't only of my parents though most of them hd pictures of my mom. I saw a picture at the end of one album that I pulled out.

"Look, Elena," Jeremy started, "I understand if you don't want to-"

I tune him out because, resting in my hands, is a picture dated from 1990 of my mother and Isobel.


End file.
